Today, it's all about Mom
By Will Manly
Pandora charm bracelets are in style for Mother's Day gifts this year. And, like every year, so are flowers.
Florists and women's gift stores look forward to Mother's Day in the same way a turkey farm can't wait for Thanksgiving.
"Valentine's and Mother's Day are the two large one-day so-to-speak floral holidays," said Dwayne Spady, owner of Dwayne's Designs. "And it's debatable which one is more than the other, probably depending on the city or the location."
Mother's Day has been celebrated in the United States for a century -- it was first named a national holiday by President Woodrow Wilson in 1914, but some factions celebrated formally as early as 1908. And mothers have been honored in various ways for millennia: Some history accounts describe festivals in ancient Greece that celebrate mothers.
These days, Mother's Day is a huge deal for jewelry and knick-knack stores.
Simply Charmed was much busier last week than normal, said Staci Bertholf, a sales clerk at the store.
"I would say maybe even three times as busy as normal," she said.
Pandora -- a line of customizable charm bracelet -- is one of the most fashionable gifts, Bertholf said.
While florists and other gift-sellers have been busy this week, their business is not of the same nature as at other holidays. Valentine's Day brings frantic boyfriends and husbands who rush into flower shops hoping to impress a lady-friend; Mother's Day is more calm.
"It tends to be about as busy Valentine's Day but it tends to be more relaxed," Spady said. "I think it's because it's a different kind of love. Mother's day is about mother love. Everybody's trying to show appreciation."
